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| Boldwood Books 11 August 2020 My thanks to the author, publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for my ecopy of this book and the invitation to the blog tour |
Does the heart never really forget?
When Ava’s partner Will is diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour, the doctors give Will one chance to survive - an operation which means he will lose his recent memory. Ava begs him to take the chance, sure that she can cope with Will forgetting her. After all, they have something very special to live for.
But they are also keeping a heart-breaking secret, and if Will loses his memory, Ava will have to carry that secret alone.
Can they rebuild their love from scratch or will their secrets and past come between them? Will Ava really be a stranger when Will wakes up – or does the heart never really forget…
What did I think about it..
Memories make us who we are and create an anchor point for both the important and the mundane activities of our lives. To have those memories removed so that they are gone forever is the worrying situation facing Ava's partner, Will, who after surgery on a brain tumour, knows that a chunk of his recent memory will have gone. He no longer remembers his life with Ava and other than she is pretty and kind, Will has no knowledge of their three year relationship.
What then follows is a thoughtful story which puts into focus all those little nuances that go into the making of a relationship. That there are secrets in Ava and Will's life is obvious from the start, so it was interesting to see just how their individual dilemmas unfolded, as each have so much to lose, and so much to gain by being as honest as they can with each other. And that of course is where the difficulty lies, as how can you be honest when you can't or don't want to remember?
The story flows well and I enjoyed reading the chapters from both Ava and Will's point of view, I think that the author succeeds in bringing their different personalities alive. There were times when I struggled to like both of them but I think that is what makes this story so relatable, after all, we can't all be nice all the time! I enjoyed meeting the other characters who flit into and out of the story as they each add their own personalities, and different strengths, to the story as it unfolds.
I have now read several of this author's work, so I know that she does these relationship stories very well and The Girl You Forgot is another good example of taking a difficult subject, something this author doesn't shy away from, and delivering a story about life, love and loss in a relatable and meaningful way.
Giselle Green is an award winning, bestselling contemporary women's fiction author. Mum to six boys (half of whom have flown the nest) and owner of one bright orange and cinnamon canary who hopefully never will, Giselle enjoys creating emotionally gripping storylines about family and relationships.
Twitter @gisellegreenuk
Many Thanks for reading and reviewing, Jo. Much appreciated, as always.
ReplyDeleteAlways a pleasure. Thank you for inviting us to your blog tour x
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